Exposition: Letters (Important Things to Remember)

What is most important to remember about writing letters?

There are three (3) important things to remember about writing letters:

    1. The position of the headings

    2. The correct details for headings of the social/informal and 

        business/formal letters

    3. Which situations require social or business headings

(1) The Position of the Headings

For the CSEC English examinations, we will use the BLOCK style/form. This means that all of the details for the headings are flushed left (against the left margin). 

Letter headings include: sender and/ or recipient’s address, date, salutation, complimentary close, signature and name.

(2)  Correct Details for Headings of Social and Business Letters

Click me for details on address format, samples, et cetera

(3) Which Situations Require Social Or Business Headings?

Use Social Heading...	Use Business Heading...
When writing to:	When writing to:
-    a friend -    a relative -    the neighbour	-   banks -   businesses -   companies -   schools -   government offices
For:	For:
-  having a  relaxed chat -  sharing ideas and feelings informally -  apologizing informally -  thanking/ inviting/ congratulating a friend or relative	-   applying for a job -  complaining to an establishment -   apologizing formally -   requesting permission -   thanking/ inviting/ congratulating formally